What is a timestamp?
A timestamp is a piece of information that denotes the date and time when a particular event occurred or when data was recorded. It typically includes details such as the year, month, day, hour, minute, and second. Timestamps are commonly used in computer systems, databases, and various applications to keep track of when events happen, enabling chronological organization and analysis of data. They are especially important for logging and tracking changes, allowing users to understand the sequence of events and when they occurred. Timestamps are often represented in a standardized format for ease of interpretation and comparison.
What are timestamps used for?
Timestamps are used for recording events such as financial trading transactions, credit card transactions, legal transactions, business transactions, equipment alarm status changes and many others. Timestamps are also used and exchanged in time transfer technologies.
Where do timestamps come from?
The timestamp source is the GNSS timing extraction using GNSS timing receiver technology. Timestamps are distributed to devices that consume timestamps using timing distribution protocols such as Network Time Protocol (NTP) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP).
How accurate do timestamps need to be?
Timestamp accuracy requirements range from 100s of milliseconds to nanoseconds, depending on the application for which the timestamps are used.
How many timestamps are logged in the world each day?
Billions of timestamps are generated and consumed every day and the availability and accuracy of these timestamps is, for the most part, taken for granted. This is why timestamp delivery is an engineered service that requires some level of thought and planning.
